Warning: This story contains details of rape and an execution, which may be distressing to some readers.
More than 30 years after the brutal murder of four family members, a death row inmate has been executed.
Richard Kenneth Djerf was executed by the state of Arizona on Friday, October 17, at the age of 55 through lethal injection.
Djerf had spent over three decades on death row for his heinous crimes against a single family.
In September 1993, he murdered Albert Luna Sr, his wife, Patricia, and their two children, Rochelle, 18, and Damien, five. This was part of a twisted revenge plot during which he also raped the teenage girl.
At the time, Djerf, who was 23, accused Albert, a former colleague, of burglarizing his apartment and stealing several electronic items.
The Arizona Department of Corrections, Rehabilitation and Reentry (ADCRR) reported that Djerf’s last meal included a double cheeseburger with lettuce and tomato, onion rings with ketchup, and a piece of cherry pie topped with whipped cream.
He washed this down with a 20-ounce Pepsi with ice and chose not to express any final words before the lethal dose was administered.
Deputy Director John Barcello noted that Djerf did not resist during the execution, though establishing an IV was challenging due to less than optimal veins, requiring multiple attempts. The procedure began at 10.05 am, with Djerf pronounced dead at 10.40 am.
The execution followed his appalling crimes, where he forcibly entered the Luna family home in Phoenix over thirty years ago, subjecting them to terror and torture.
Initially, he held Patricia and her young son at gunpoint to steal household goods, after which he bound and gagged them.
Upon Rochelle’s return home, he also bound and gagged her before raping and slitting her throat.
He reportedly told Patricia, 42, after killing the teenager, “Do you want to watch your kid die, or do you want your kid to watch you die?” referring to five-year-old Damien.
When Albert arrived, Djerf handcuffed him to a bed and attacked him with a baseball bat.
The 47-year-old father regained consciousness and attempted to protect his family by attacking Djerf with a pocket knife.
Djerf sustained injuries from the knife but ultimately stabbed Albert and shot him six times with a pistol.
He then shot Patricia and Damien in the head at close range.
In an effort to erase evidence, he attempted to set the house and bodies on fire with gasoline and fled in the Luna family’s car.
Djerf pleaded guilty to four counts of first-degree murder in 1995 in a plea deal that dropped other charges, resulting in a death sentence.
By 2021, he had exhausted all his appeals. Last month, he indicated he would not seek further relief from the state’s clemency board, saying, “If I can’t find reason to spare my life, what reason would anyone else have? I hope my death brings some measure of peace.”
If you have been affected by issues mentioned in this article, you can reach out to The National Sexual Assault Hotline at 800.656.HOPE (4673), available 24/7, or chat online at online.rainn.org.